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Narrowboat Girl #2
Water Gypsies
Sequel to The Narrowboat Girl.
It is 1942, and after a childhood of suffering in Birmingham, Maryann Bartholomew has built a life of happiness and safety with her husband Joel and their children, working the canals on his narrowboat, the Esther Jane. But the back-breaking work and constant childbearing take their toll on Maryann...
It is 1942, and after a childhood of suffering in Birmingham, Maryann Bartholomew has built a life of happiness and safety with her husband Joel and their children, working the canals on his narrowboat, the Esther Jane. But the back-breaking work and constant childbearing take their toll on Maryann...
458 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1930
24 people are currently reading
321 people want to read
About the author
Annie Murray
51 books167 followersAnnie Murray was a ‘childhood writer.’ Her career was helped a great deal by belonging to Tindal Street Fiction Group in Birmingham and by winning the SHE/Granada TV Short Story Competition in 1991. She has published short stories in a number of anthologies as well as SHE magazine. Her first regional saga, Birmingham Rose appeared in 1995 and reached the Times bestseller list. She has since published more than a dozen others, including the ‘Cadbury books,’ Chocolate Girls and The Bells of Bournville Green, Family of Women and her latest, A Hopscotch Summer. Annie has four children and lives near Reading.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
January 4, 2018
Really enjoyed highly recommended.
February 6, 2016
I thought this book was going to be complete historical fiction leaning more towards the daily
life on the canals during WWII with details about what the boats meant to the times.
It turned out to be not what I expected and got very dark
with the story of the lives of the people on the boats, leaving the historical part of the
canals to be not the main topic.
Some shocking details of things that happened to them made it disturbing.
This is a link on the subject:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/a...
life on the canals during WWII with details about what the boats meant to the times.
It turned out to be not what I expected and got very dark
with the story of the lives of the people on the boats, leaving the historical part of the
canals to be not the main topic.
Some shocking details of things that happened to them made it disturbing.
This is a link on the subject:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/a...
February 19, 2017
Author: Annie Murray
Title: Water Gypsies
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Romance,
I was given this book along with the first book in this series the narrowboat girl.
This book has 458 pages and 50 chapters in it.
I would tell people that you should step outside your comfort zone with books because it is good to add more authors and genres to your reading portfolio. Even if you do not read books like this.
I normally read books of this genre but l also stepped outside my comfort zone with authors and genres l am so glad l did because l have read so many great books and come across some great authors.
I highly recommend this book but l would tell people to have the narrowboat girl as well so you can read the first book in the series and then this book so you know the full story not half.
Synopsis: It is 1942, after a childhood of suffering in Birmingham Maryann Bartholomew has built a life of happiness and safety with her husband Joel and their children, working the canals on his narrowboat, the Esther Jane. But the back-breaking and constant childbearing takes their toll on Maryann, and the tragic loss of her old friend Nancy, followed by a further pregnancy, leads her to commit a desperate act which nearly costs her life, the walls of her security are broken down when Joel suffers an accident and. To keep the boats working, Maryann is forced to allow Sylvia and Dot, two wartime volunteers, in to the privacy of her life. When she discovered that someone keeps calling her at Birmingham's tyseley wharf, the dark memories of her past begin to overwhelm her. For that someone, who seems to be watching her every move, is becoming more dangerous than even she could imagine. This is the seguel to the narrowboat girl. In august 1942 Maryann gives birth to twin girls by then she had two sons named Joel and Ezra and A daughter named Sally after her beloved sister and Maryann also had a son Harry who sadly passed away due to pneumonia and Maryann and Joel named their daughters Ada and Esther after Joel's mother and sister. Maryann's best friend falls in to the water when heavily pregnant and drowns and her unborn baby dies too. Maryann and Darius are very upset and Norman Griffin turns up and sets fire to the boat with Maryann, Sally, Rose and the twins Esther and Ada on and poor Maryann and Ada was burnt and a woman helped her with Ada's burn by putting flour on to dry it up.
Review: I found this book really easy to get in to and hard to put down once l started reading it. I was hooked after reading the first page. I was really happy to be reading the follow on to the narrowboat girl. I was happy to read that Maryann had got a happy life with her husband and their 5 children and I was sad to read that Maryann lost a little boy Harry that he died of pheumonia. I was sad to read that Maryann's best friend Nancy drowned like Ada Joel and Darius's sister but is was very upsetting for Maryann because Nancy was Maryann only friend. She always use to share all her feelings with her sister Sally but she took her own life because of the things Norman Griffin did to her. Maryann and Sally's mother Flo buried Sally under Griffin not Nelson which l thought was wrong after everything Norman did to them poor girls. I thought their mother only cared about herself not her four children. She wanted money not her children. I was sad to read that Nancy's unborn baby died after she fell in the water and drowned and Darius was very upset about the loss of his girlfriend and their unborn baby. I wish Nancy and Daruis could have been married because they made a great couple and l was happy Maryann did not die and she lived after her boat was set on fire. I felt sorry for poor Ada and Maryann being burnt and l hope Norman goes to jail where he belong
About The Author: Annie Murray was born in 1960 in Berkshire, and studied English at oxford university. Her first job took her to Birmingham where she met her husband, John. They have four children. In 1992 she began writing her first Birmingham novel, Birmingham rose, which made the times bestseller list when it was published in 1995. She has written six subsequent novels including, most recently, the highly successful chocolate girls.
About The Book: l love this cover and this book has two different covers and l love the front.
Star Rating: Five Out Of Five Stars
Title: Water Gypsies
Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Historical Romance, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Romance,
I was given this book along with the first book in this series the narrowboat girl.
This book has 458 pages and 50 chapters in it.
I would tell people that you should step outside your comfort zone with books because it is good to add more authors and genres to your reading portfolio. Even if you do not read books like this.
I normally read books of this genre but l also stepped outside my comfort zone with authors and genres l am so glad l did because l have read so many great books and come across some great authors.
I highly recommend this book but l would tell people to have the narrowboat girl as well so you can read the first book in the series and then this book so you know the full story not half.
Synopsis: It is 1942, after a childhood of suffering in Birmingham Maryann Bartholomew has built a life of happiness and safety with her husband Joel and their children, working the canals on his narrowboat, the Esther Jane. But the back-breaking and constant childbearing takes their toll on Maryann, and the tragic loss of her old friend Nancy, followed by a further pregnancy, leads her to commit a desperate act which nearly costs her life, the walls of her security are broken down when Joel suffers an accident and. To keep the boats working, Maryann is forced to allow Sylvia and Dot, two wartime volunteers, in to the privacy of her life. When she discovered that someone keeps calling her at Birmingham's tyseley wharf, the dark memories of her past begin to overwhelm her. For that someone, who seems to be watching her every move, is becoming more dangerous than even she could imagine. This is the seguel to the narrowboat girl. In august 1942 Maryann gives birth to twin girls by then she had two sons named Joel and Ezra and A daughter named Sally after her beloved sister and Maryann also had a son Harry who sadly passed away due to pneumonia and Maryann and Joel named their daughters Ada and Esther after Joel's mother and sister. Maryann's best friend falls in to the water when heavily pregnant and drowns and her unborn baby dies too. Maryann and Darius are very upset and Norman Griffin turns up and sets fire to the boat with Maryann, Sally, Rose and the twins Esther and Ada on and poor Maryann and Ada was burnt and a woman helped her with Ada's burn by putting flour on to dry it up.
Review: I found this book really easy to get in to and hard to put down once l started reading it. I was hooked after reading the first page. I was really happy to be reading the follow on to the narrowboat girl. I was happy to read that Maryann had got a happy life with her husband and their 5 children and I was sad to read that Maryann lost a little boy Harry that he died of pheumonia. I was sad to read that Maryann's best friend Nancy drowned like Ada Joel and Darius's sister but is was very upsetting for Maryann because Nancy was Maryann only friend. She always use to share all her feelings with her sister Sally but she took her own life because of the things Norman Griffin did to her. Maryann and Sally's mother Flo buried Sally under Griffin not Nelson which l thought was wrong after everything Norman did to them poor girls. I thought their mother only cared about herself not her four children. She wanted money not her children. I was sad to read that Nancy's unborn baby died after she fell in the water and drowned and Darius was very upset about the loss of his girlfriend and their unborn baby. I wish Nancy and Daruis could have been married because they made a great couple and l was happy Maryann did not die and she lived after her boat was set on fire. I felt sorry for poor Ada and Maryann being burnt and l hope Norman goes to jail where he belong
About The Author: Annie Murray was born in 1960 in Berkshire, and studied English at oxford university. Her first job took her to Birmingham where she met her husband, John. They have four children. In 1992 she began writing her first Birmingham novel, Birmingham rose, which made the times bestseller list when it was published in 1995. She has written six subsequent novels including, most recently, the highly successful chocolate girls.
About The Book: l love this cover and this book has two different covers and l love the front.
Star Rating: Five Out Of Five Stars
November 19, 2014
A wonderful period novel set in the 40s telling the story of life on the canal.
Maryann Bartholomew is a boatwoman, married to a born and bred boatman though she struggles being not born to the life she tries hard to be a good wife and help to her husband Joel.
Burdened with many children and with one on the way she does something drastic followed close on the heels of this she has to face more tragedy when her best friend Nancy who is heavily pregnant drowns on the canal and yet more disaster when her husband Joel also takes a fall and damages his back.
Faced with financial ruin with the main worker of the family incapacitated Maryann must fend for herself with the casual help of Bobby, one of their workers on the boat.
Fate intervenes when the main office gives them two female wartime volunteer boat workers.
Maryann is desperately unhappy with this situation but knows she can't cope with the boats herself and a hoard of children.
Reluctantly she shares some of her duties and life with her new help, Sylvia and Dot who at first she struggles to relate to as they are all so different in temperament and background but in time the ladies forge a strong friendship which is tested to the limits when a deep, dark and to Maryann shameful secret she thought long buried in the past resurfaces to alter all their lives dramatically.
Can things turn out well with the fates so stacked against the Bartholomew family?
Well written, exciting and a brilliant historical / period novel which evokes a wonderful spirit of a time past.
Believable characters and fast paced storyline make this a must for fans of the genre.
Definitely a great read.
Maryann Bartholomew is a boatwoman, married to a born and bred boatman though she struggles being not born to the life she tries hard to be a good wife and help to her husband Joel.
Burdened with many children and with one on the way she does something drastic followed close on the heels of this she has to face more tragedy when her best friend Nancy who is heavily pregnant drowns on the canal and yet more disaster when her husband Joel also takes a fall and damages his back.
Faced with financial ruin with the main worker of the family incapacitated Maryann must fend for herself with the casual help of Bobby, one of their workers on the boat.
Fate intervenes when the main office gives them two female wartime volunteer boat workers.
Maryann is desperately unhappy with this situation but knows she can't cope with the boats herself and a hoard of children.
Reluctantly she shares some of her duties and life with her new help, Sylvia and Dot who at first she struggles to relate to as they are all so different in temperament and background but in time the ladies forge a strong friendship which is tested to the limits when a deep, dark and to Maryann shameful secret she thought long buried in the past resurfaces to alter all their lives dramatically.
Can things turn out well with the fates so stacked against the Bartholomew family?
Well written, exciting and a brilliant historical / period novel which evokes a wonderful spirit of a time past.
Believable characters and fast paced storyline make this a must for fans of the genre.
Definitely a great read.
Read
October 23, 2015It's alright but it doesn't match up to its prequel.
January 1, 2018
enjoyed this book
February 20, 2013
Annie Murray never disappoints. "Water Gypsies" takes you right into the life of the boat-people, especially the women. The sequel to The Narrowboat Girl, Water Gypsies follows ing the life and travels of this Maryann and her family and friends. But not matter how far and how often she travels the waterways Maryann's past never seems to be far away.
A tale of everyday life on the canals entwined with mystery, murder and intrigue. A great read.
A tale of everyday life on the canals entwined with mystery, murder and intrigue. A great read.
December 16, 2016
This is a delightful story.
It is set just after WWII and tells tales of life on a working canal boat in England.
The reader quickly appreciates what a tough like these people led.
It is a tale of close personal relationships, fear of the past, love and loss, drama and suspense.
I really enjoyed it and hope other readers would too.
It is set just after WWII and tells tales of life on a working canal boat in England.
The reader quickly appreciates what a tough like these people led.
It is a tale of close personal relationships, fear of the past, love and loss, drama and suspense.
I really enjoyed it and hope other readers would too.
July 7, 2009
I enjoyed this because of its setting but had I not been interested in canal life of that time period it probably wouldn't have held my attention.
January 1, 2013
Love all Annie Murrays books
August 21, 2016
amazingly written, really felt like the characters were real people. shame it's not part of a trilogy
January 9, 2020
I must preface this by saying that I did not realise there was a prequel until I was quite far into this book, so I may have missed something. I gave it 3 stars because although after a while I did become engrossed, there were a number of things that held it back from being great. Firstly, the sheer number of distracting mistakes, including grammatical errors, incorrect tenses, extra words, shortened versions of names and proper names used interchangeably and incorrectly even sometimes within the same sentence, and other careless errors that made me feel like it was barely edited. Also, since it was a wartime story I felt like a little more information pertinent to the time other than the occasional mention of rations would have helped in setting the scene. It was quite a depressing story to begin with, and I felt like I was trudging through her misery until the other ladies arrived. After this, it got interesting and held my attention until the end. Also, I picked up this book because I live on a boat and was interested to read about the life aboard canal boats back in the 40s. Despite the tiny glossary I found at the back, it was a little frustrating at times to read so many terms as well as regional language that were not explained. Otherwise it developed into a more captivating story as it went on and I enjoyed the character development and the camaraderie between the women. In addition I must say some parts of the story were extremely well written - many were harrowing but gripping.
December 31, 2023
This is a book I've had on my shelf for ages that someone gave me that I'd been putting off for ages. I think going by the cover I thought it was going to be another wishy washy book without much substance or plot but I was definitely wrong. I didn't realize this was a duology until I was already about 100 pages in but I think the author provided enough information that I didn't miss too much of the original story. It was a really good historical fiction book and not the type of story/situation I've ever read about before with people living on the canals. It was quite compelling, gripping and also pretty dark at times. It tackles some quite triggering issues like abortion, child abduction and sexual assault, mental institutions/mental health conditions and domestic violence. Overall it was totally not what I was expecting and I really enjoyed it apart from thinking it was perhaps a little long.
June 5, 2021
4.5*
Boy is this a doozy of a book! The cover makes it look like any run of the mill familial historical drama but it’s really not.
The plot, the characters and the author’s unflinching honesty about the realities of life, heart break, hard work, abuse and emotional trauma are what makes this book pack such a punch.
Maryann has had a hard life, she faces a hard life and this is swept under the rug. The realities of it are authentically brought to life and the plot is nail biting and heart breaking.
I was very pleasantly surprised. An excellent book.
Boy is this a doozy of a book! The cover makes it look like any run of the mill familial historical drama but it’s really not.
The plot, the characters and the author’s unflinching honesty about the realities of life, heart break, hard work, abuse and emotional trauma are what makes this book pack such a punch.
Maryann has had a hard life, she faces a hard life and this is swept under the rug. The realities of it are authentically brought to life and the plot is nail biting and heart breaking.
I was very pleasantly surprised. An excellent book.
March 24, 2018
I read this shortly after reading the first in the series, The Narrowboat Girl. I enjoyed following Maryann's life further. A lot of research has obviously gone into this book, I learned that during WWII women of all walks of life helped crew the canal barges (a bit like the land girls system) and that life on the boats could be incredibly hard.
A good read - but advisable to read The Narrowboat Girl first.
A good read - but advisable to read The Narrowboat Girl first.
May 2, 2021
Fantastic read, Water Gypsies brilliant
Thank you Annie Murray for another great book. You have done so much research and the story keeps you gripped from the beginning. Having read narrowboat girl first the follow through to this book was brilliant. Fully recommend to all your followers. Xx
Thank you Annie Murray for another great book. You have done so much research and the story keeps you gripped from the beginning. Having read narrowboat girl first the follow through to this book was brilliant. Fully recommend to all your followers. Xx
March 30, 2019
Absolutely amazing follow-up from The Narrowboat Girl. It is gripping from the very first page. Maryann is an amazing heroine, it seams her suffering seems to be at no-end from the beginning. Your heart just goes out to her and her family. Readers will love this book.
September 26, 2022
Continuing on the story from the first book didn't disappoint me.
I found this to quite intense to read. I couldn't put this down.
I did need to... to calm down from the thrill.
Annie Murray is brilliant. I will look forward to reading more of her novels.
I found this to quite intense to read. I couldn't put this down.
I did need to... to calm down from the thrill.
Annie Murray is brilliant. I will look forward to reading more of her novels.
February 13, 2018
Unsavory sub plot, not as good as the first part, but interesting regarding life for boat women
March 12, 2019
Really enjoyed this book. A different perspective on the war years.
December 12, 2019
Very interesting read.
August 22, 2021
Great sequel to continue the story. If you enjoyed the narrow-boat girl you will enjoy this read, guarantied. Heart-warming full of loss, friendship, good and bad times, this will stay with you.
November 18, 2021
Great but emotional book..
July 11, 2024
Harrowing in parts but it all comes well in the end.
Well written book ,life on the cut was a very hard life .
Well written book ,life on the cut was a very hard life .
March 19, 2022
If you have read the narrowboat girl you must read the follow up book water gypsies. Brilliant.
August 1, 2016
Another great book
I have read , The Narrowboat Girl by this author and this is the follow up to it and is as good a book as the first one. Will be looking for more books by this author
I have read , The Narrowboat Girl by this author and this is the follow up to it and is as good a book as the first one. Will be looking for more books by this author
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February 1, 2018Another of my favourites
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews